Things to Consider Before Getting a Pet Ferret

Series Summary

The ferret is a member of the mustelid family, which also includes weasels, stoats, and martens. Ferrets have been domesticated pets for thousands of years, possibly as far back as 1500 BCE. The long and lean stature of the ferret gives it the ability to get down holes and chase out burrowing creatures, such as rabbits and rodents. This skill has made them a very popular hunting companion, and ferrets were often employed to help protect grain in the U.S. as recently as World War II. By the 1970s ferrets became popular household pets in America. And because our pets are much more to us than just animals, knowing how to give them the proper care is essential. We have domesticated these animals from the wild and taught them to expect to have their needs met by humans. In order for the pet-human relationship to work, we have to do our part.

In these free video clips, you'll learn how to care for your pet ferret. Animal lover and expert veterinarian Fran Freedman offers tips on how to buy or adopt a ferret, how to prepare your home and family for its newest member, and gives advice on ferret-proofing your home. She continues with tips on ferret care, including setting up a cage and bedding for your ferret, advice on litter pans and training, and how to create a healthy diet for your new pet. The tips and advice in these video clips will help ensure your ferret lives a long and healthy life.

Video Transcript

" Hi there! I’m Fran Freedman here at Morning Starr Animal Sanctuary, and we’re going to discuss today about ferrets on behalf of expertvillage.com. We’d like to talk a little bit about adding a ferret to your family. There’s a few points I’d like to make first before you add a ferret to your family. The first thing you should do is think about your lifestyle. Does you lifestyle have the time, the energy, and the financial ability to adopt a ferret? The first thing with ferrets is usually over 60% of ferrets by the age of 2 will come down with some kind of terminal illness and require vet care. Vet care can be very expensive, so financially you have to be prepared for that. You also have to be prepared to house your ferret in something like this, it’s a cage. They’re usually running 200 dollars and up, and that is the best solution for a ferret to be safe when he is not in play. When he is in play, he can be out into a ferret pin, exercise pin, where a ferrets can run and be safe, play with the toys, not in just anything dangerous, and knocking into anything in your household that you don’t want them to get into. Ferrets can be disruptive to carpeting, they can eat poisonous plants and we don’t want that happening. If you can do all those things then you can start thinking about a ferret. Also, do you have the time? Ferrets require approximately 2 hours a day of playtime. They do sleep 15-18 hours a day. Sleep is very important for them, so you have to make sure that when you have the out time, that you some interaction with them, to keep them socialized and make sure that they are safe and have a good time playing with people so that they can have good healthy exercise and life. "